Chemistry 30

Chemistry 30s have a busy month ahead! Now that we are officially finished half of the curricular outcomes for chemistry 30, students are going to have to kick it into high gear! This week, the students will complete their Unit B Electrochemistry Exam on Wednesday after having 2 days to study in class. I would like to thank the chem 30s for finally handing their labs in on time (for the most part). Last week, I had many of the labs handed in on the due date, which has not happened previously in this class (YAY for the small things!) Once finished the Electrochemistry Unit, we will be jumping into Acid Base Equilibrium. I often find students struggle the most with this difficult unit, and because it is less applicable to real life, the interest is really hard to get going… Easy fix – lots of labs! Chem 30s perform 4 labs in this unit, allowing them greater understanding of the concepts (although it is a lot of work)! Once we have a good amount of the Acid Base Equilibrium understanding, chem 30s will be asked to write the midterm exam. This exam is a summative assessment of all parts covered in chem 30 up to this point! It is difficult, but I try to allow students to be as prepared as possible for the midterm. It should be noted here that although the midterm is a summative exam and cannot be rewritten, should a student do poorly on the exam, yet better on the final exam, the final mark (if higher) will replace the midterm mark. (I swear I have no idea how kids don’t take advantage of all the rewrite opportunities we never had in high school?!?!)This Week in Chemistry 20 Monday – Work period (Ms. Mogck Out) Tuesday – Review of Electrochemistry Unit B Wednesday – Unit B Electrochem Exam Thursday – Review of Acid Base (chem 20) Friday – Intro to Acid Base EquilibriumUpcoming Due Dates Wednesday October 29 – UNIT B EXAM Friday October 31 – Lab Replacement Project due (no lates) Monday November 3 – Unit B Exam REWRITE (after school) Thursday November 13 – MIDTERM EXAM

On Friday, the Chem 30s wrote their first Electrochemistry quiz. I found a lot of students commenting on how difficult the quiz questions seemed as opposed to the workbook questions. The reason quizzes seem more difficult to students is because during work time, the students are getting between 5-10 practice questions dealing with the same concepts, but when they go to write the test, it is a mashup of a variety of questions, and students are asked to identify the type of question prior to determining the answer to the question. This makes quizzes and exams much more difficult than workbook questions. To do better on quizzes, students should review all concepts and try a variety of questions to ensure they have proper comprehension. I can provide extra practice questions, if students request so?!

Chem 30s will be rewriting a quiz they did not do so well on, on Monday, in hopes that ALL student's marks will improve. From there, we will be delving into the real life applications of electrochemistry: BATTERIES AND CELLS! By performing an inquiry lab, students will achieve the hands on experience required to understand this concept. From there, we will finish up Unit B and begin to review the unit.

A reminder that after this unit, chem 30s will be required to write a MIDTERM exam. This will be a summative exam covering the first two units (Thermochemistry and Electrochemistry). The exam is not rewritable, however the in class final exam preceding the diploma can replace this mark if it is an improvement. Coming Up This WeekMonday: Moodle Rewrite QuizTuesday: Electrochemical Cell Inquiry Quick LabWednesday: Voltaic and Electrolytic CellsThursday: Faraday's LawFriday: Work Period

Although short, this week is mighty for the chem 30s! Unfortunately, I am being sent to Lethbridge to a conference dealing with High School Redesign on Thursday, and therefore will not be in class. The benefit is, the kids will be given time to work on their titration lab report! :)

This week, we will be completing our titration lab in chem 30, and starting the inquiry into Electrochemical Cells for a lab on Monday - which is AWESOME! I find the increased number in labs correlate with a higher level understanding and confidence entering the diploma exam. We are half way through our second unit; electrochemistry, which is worth 30% of the course in chem 30, and the students seem to be understanding! Hopefully, all this work pays off for the kids, I know its more exciting for me!

Thursday was an exciting day in chem 30! The students performed their first Redox Titration Lab. This is a 3 part, 2 day lab that focuses on the important technique of stoichiometric titrations, within Electrochemistry. There is always at least 2 diploma questions based on this subject (last year there were 4!) so it is important for students to experience and understand the whole process!

This week in chem 30 we are changing things up! Due to the fact that none of the chem 30s have handed in a lab on time (none, zero, zilch, nadda) I feel like changes need to be made. In order for it to be more efficient, students will now be able to type their labs, however there is a catch. If students choose to type the lab, ALL the lab components must be typed. That includes all graphs, diagrams, and calculations. I will not be taking half the lab on computer and the other half on paper (that would be a marking nightmare). At the same time, this means I will be hyper aware of the possibility of copying, sharing or plagiarism. If the students are found to be sharing work, or blatantly copying (especially without sourcing) then the lab mark will be zero without the opportunity to change the mark. If students choose to hand write, they are welcome to do so as well. This change for the easier is accompanied by a new and improved assessment policy addition. As you are well aware, students are able to rewrite any assessment (big or small) excluding the midterm and the final. In an attempt to get students to hand things in on time (and avoid the stacks of late marking that I currently have due to kids handing in their lab a week late) students will forfeit the opportunity to rewrite labs or exams if their assignments are not handed in on time. This will begin with the start of Unit 2 in chem 30. I have posted the Science Department assessment policy for CHS below. I hope this will not only alleviate stress on the students, but reduce the number of lates without taking off “late marks”. This week in chem 30, we are adding to our understanding of electrochemistry, and performing our first titration of the year! I really enjoy this lab that we will be doing on Thursday, and I hope the students enjoy it too!

It's that time again! The first parent teacher interviews are coming up Wednesday October 8, from 5pm-8pm. You are invited to book an interview with Ms. Mogck by visiting the SCHOOLSOFT website. If you are unable to attend the PTIs you are welcome to come in at a different time, by contacting Ms. Mogck via email!